John Lacko / Special to the GazetteUniversity of Michigan football defensive coordinator Greg Mattison speaks to area high school football coaches during the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association Winners' Circle clinic at the Radisson Plaza Hotel and Suites on Thursday evening.

KALAMAZOO — Were it one year ago, the crowd of high school football coaches assembled in a sectioned-off portion of the Arcadia Ballroom at the Radisson Plaza Hotel and Suites in Kalamazoo might have been a little thinner.

Back then, the University of Michigan football team carried the No. 107th-ranked defense in terms of points allowed (35.2 per game). This didn't exactly give the Wolverines' staff a ton of credibility to speak on the matter.

But Thursday night, a packed house at the Michigan High School Coaches Association's Winners' Circle Clinic was all ears, listening to first-year Michigan defensive coordinator Greg Mattison talk about how he and his staff morphed that sieve-like defense into one of the nation's best.

"We still have miles to be where we want to be," said Mattison, who led the seventh-best scoring defense in the nation this year.

"Next year is team No. 133. Who's going to step up? Who is going to do what these seniors did for this team? That's what they're starting on right now in their weight training and conditioning. Now it's their turn."

Mattison was among a long list of coaches to speak at the three-day clinic, which kicked off Thursday night and continues all day Friday and into Saturday.

Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio is scheduled to speak at 9:30 a.m. Friday about issues facing high school football and recruiting.
Michigan head coach Brady Hoke, who spent Thursday night in Houston as a finalist at the Bear Bryant Award ceremony, is expected to make an appearance before the 5 p.m. banquet, event organizers said.

John Lacko / Special to the GazetteMattison helped the Wolverines move from No. 107 in the nation last year to No. 7 this year in defensive scoring.

On a night that saw Michigan State offensive coordinator Dan Roushar and Western Michigan defensive coordinator Dave Cohen speak, among others, the savvy Mattison stole the show, speaking from years of experience at the collegiate and pro levels.

Mattison heaped praised on Hoke and what he called a maligned group of seniors for much of the defense's success this year.

With many of those seniors playing under three head coaches and defensive coordinators during their tenures, Mattison said they were constantly told that they were some of the worst defenders in Michigan's illustrious history.

The first order of business was to rebuild their confidence.

"You have to show them a couple things," Mattison said of his seniors. "One, if you do what you're asking them to do, they will have success. Two, they have to trust you to know that everything you're doing is for the team to have success. When that trust happens, then you got them. They play like you want them to play and that's what they did."

It's tough to question a man of Mattison's exploits. He also recorded stints with Notre Dame and Florida after leaving Michigan, where he initially served from 1992-1996. Mattison also spent some of his earlier days as defensive line coach and defensive coordinator at Western Michigan in 1982-1986.

Arguably, Mattison's most glamorous accomplishment came in the last three years, spent coaching one of the most ferocious and feared defenses in the NFL's Baltimore Ravens. He was defensive coordinator for the two seasons before returning to Michigan.

"It's something I'll always be proud of," Mattison said of his tenure with the Ravens. "I kid everyone that Ray Lewis has kind of become a Michigan fan now. He watches us and said 'Coach, I love what you're doing there.'

"I've been really fortunate to be at some really good places and be with some really good coaches. It just proved this year that it's not Greg Mattison — it's a system and a belief that Bo (Schembechler) had, that Lloyd Carr had and Gary Moeller had. I happened to be fortunate enough to be around them and that's how we did it. As long as do that, we have a chance at success."

Michigan offensive coordinator Al Borges shares his experiences

Mattison's colleague in Michigan offensive coordinator Al Borges also spoke at the event.

His session was dedicated to teaching coaches how to blend a conventional and spread offensive attack.
This is a lesson Borges learned himself this season.

With Borges making the move with Hoke from San Diego State to Michigan this year, fans who knew how potent the Wolverines were in a spread offense were anxious to see what changes the die-hard pro offensive-style coach would make.

"You're always learning," Borges said. "You won't tell the kids to do something that you're not pretty doggone sure of, but you are always trying to learn and enrich yourself."

The changes to 2010's No. 8-ranked Wolverines offense were subtle — most notably in how lightning-fast quarterback Denard Robinson was utilized.

"Our blue print was not to over-run him," Borges said of Robinson, who nearly over extended himself last year en route to setting a school record for total offensive yards.

"Run him, use him, but don't abuse him so he could stay healthy throughout the season. Stick with the blue print and in some games, he ran a lot. But, in some games, he didn't run a lot."